Only Two
by Donnie'sTwilight
Summary: What if there had only been two turtles Splinter had seen after they all mutated? Full summary inside.
1. The Beginning

_**Only Two**_

Title: Only Two

Author: Donnie'sTwilight

Summary: What if there had only been two turtles there when they were all mutated, but all four of them mutated at the same place? What if two of them had gotten away before Splinter had seen all of them as mutants?

Pairings: none

Rating: K+

POV: Donnie's

Disclaimer: I do not own the Turtles. All of the characters belong to their rightful owners.

This is my first Fanfiction so please don't give me a hard time. I try my best.

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Chapter 1: The Beginning

I looked to my older brother. He didn't seem too sure of his actions at this point. I wasn't sure either of us were. "Leo, are you sure it's safe?" I whispered, my soft voice echoing in the dark and scary sewers.

"How else are we supposed to find food?" he wondered to me. I shrugged. He had a good point. Right now, we were willing to do anything to survive. But, it wasn't necessarily easy and/or safe for two mutant turtles to go and wander around in New York, walking through the busy and crowded streets. Everyone would run screaming. We had never been up, but we knew enough. We didn't have to know. All humans treated people who were different cruelly. Leo, even though he was guessing, had said before that humans wanted to take us into labs and test on us. I didn't want that. I'm sure Leo didn't want that, either.

Leo was my protector. He was more intelligent than me and certainly had the skills. He was much braver than me. He was ready to face the humans when I shrieked like a little girl when I saw a little sewer rat run past me. I'm sure the rats couldn't hurt us. Humans certainly could.

"Come on, Donnie. Let's go," Leo said softly and I nodded. He took my hand and we walked towards the closest manhole. He let go and I looked at my feet solemnly as Leo climbed up the ladder to the top. It looked like a long ways up. I looked up just in time to see Leo force the manhole cover off. He got it all the way off with a short grunt before climbing out.

"Don, you coming?" Leo asked.

"Yeah," I mumbled loud enough for him to hear me. I walked to the ladder and shuddered when my hands came in contact with the slippery metal rungs. This was sure to be brutal for me. I was shaking as I climbed. I was seriously afraid of heights. My arms and legs were wobbly, but it wasn't just from fear. I couldn't walk as well as Leo and my arms weren't as strong as his. But, I had to make an effort for him. He was all I had.

I finally made it to the top and I took Leo's hand as he pulled me out. I looked around, a little scared. It was a lot worse out here than I had ever imagined. And Leo said I had such a vivid imagination. Huh.

"Let's find something to eat," Leo muttered. I nodded and took his hand again after he covered the manhole. I looked out on the streets, suddenly curious instead of frightened. I saw tons of humans roaming the place. There shouldn't be that many people living in New York. But, I guess a lot of people spent the day walking around the streets in the middle of the day. They were all wearing clothes. It confused me. Why didn't we have clothes? Well, we had nothing to hide, but it might be helpful to blend in. What did they have to hide?

"Leo, why do humans wear clothes?" I asked him.

"I'm not sure," Leo answered. "Now, let's go, Donnie."

We walked over to the filthy dumpster in the alley that we were currently in. "You go first, Don," Leo said. I looked at him. "Trust me."

I hated it when he said that when we were doing something I wasn't sure of. I had to trust him. If I didn't, how would we get along? Would he leave me if I didn't? I needed help surviving and Leo was obviously the only one I knew who could help me. I had to trust him. But, I nodded anyway. He got down on his knees and folded his hands. I stepped one foot into his hands and he boosted me up. I clambered over the edge of the dumpster and fell in.

"Oof," I hissed when my shell hit the trash. Leo soon joined me and helped me up.

We searched for a bit, looking for any food that was still good. Obviously, we couldn't eat scraps or any food that was expired unless we wanted to get sick. So, we always had to check expiration dates on anything we found and we had to be on the lookout for boxed or canned food. Not many people threw away all that salvageable food, so we were lucky when we found stuff like that.

We went back home with only a box of cereal. I wasn't even sure if we would like it, but we couldn't easily complain about finding something to eat. At this point, I was willing to eat anything.

"We have to make this last," Leo told me as he led me back to where we were currently residing at. It wasn't much. All it was is a few pillows and a blanket inside a little section of the sewer wall that was cut out and away from the wall. We used one pillow between us and we shared the blanket at night when we slept. We used the other two pillows as a barrier to keep the dampness and cold of the sewers away from us as much as possible.

"I know, Leo. This isn't the first thing we've eaten," I sighed. We went over this every time we found something to eat.

"I'm sorry, Don. I just don't want anything to happen to you. You're not going to die of starvation," Leo muttered. "You're all I have."

"And you're all that I have. I know you're trying to help out and I appreciate the effort. But you don't have to lecture me every time we eat that I can't eat much," I apologized. He nodded.

"Sorry," Leo mumbled. I smiled at him as we climbed into our little home.

As soon as we were both settled, he carefully opened the top of the box. I took out our little pair of scissors that someone had thrown down here. They proved to be useful at times. This was one of those times. I snipped through the thin little plastic bag containing the cereal, wondering why they didn't just put the cereal in the box. It'd be so much easier. But the cereal companies were just wasting trees and ruining the world. The plastic was so dangerous and Leo had once explained to me that was why the air of New York was polluted. It didn't surprise me that it was that bad.

We each took a small handful of the little heart cereal out of the box. We usually poured the cereal into the box after we opened it. It was easier for us. He sealed the box and tucked it under the pillow. "This is all we get for now," Leo told me and I nodded. I might as well take the time to eat it. I didn't want to starve until Leo felt like it was time to eat. But, we both had tough stomachs. We could go longer than usual turtles without food. But, we went a ton longer without food than the humans, who ate three times a day, usually.

As I picked at my handful of the little tasty heart-shaped cereal, I reflected on how we had turned out this way.

_ I got up slowly, covered in some neon blue ooze. I carefully shook it off of me, not wanting the disgusting substance to stick to me. I looked around and saw a mutant turtle sitting next to me. He looked at me, fear in his eyes. Through his eyes, I could see my face reflected in his eyes like a mirror. There, I could see how scared I was, too._

_ He stood and offered me his hand. I nodded and took his hand. I didn't want to be alone and if he left, I'd be all alone. I couldn't see anyone else around. I didn't want to be found by others, either._

_ He helped me to my feet and I faintly remember eating something from before I had awoken. I could taste it in my mouth, but it seemed repulsive. I could also remember hearing a few names. I wasn't sure which name was mine and which name was his. I swear I could remember him being with me before I woke up. But, shell, why couldn't I remember anything else? _

_ I shrugged it off and he led me down the sewer tunnel._

That was all I could remember thinking of. But later on that night, I could remember knowing that the other's name was Leonardo, but he preferred Leo. I also liked it, because I couldn't pronounce 'Leonardo' correctly. My name was Donatello, but we both liked Donnie or Don because it was easy to say, and, both of us being young, we couldn't talk perfectly. We still had a tough time speaking right.

I finally finished my cereal, but found that Leo still had half a handful left. Well, it didn't surprise me because he had more restraint when it came to eating. I was so hungry, and weaker than Leo. He could withstand no food for a lot longer than I could. He looked at me and realized that I didn't have any food left.

"You want some?" Leo offered.

"It's yours," I argued. I didn't want my brother to starve.

"But you need it more. You're so pale…" Leo trailed off.

"I'm fine," I pleaded.

He shook his head. "Donnie, you need to eat. Look, you can half of what I have left. I ate a bit more than you from the last meal we ate."

I finally gave up and Leo dumped half of the remainder into my cupped hands. I leaned against Leo as I ate my cereal, guilty. Leo was going to starve because of me. I didn't want that. He needed to eat just as much as I did. But, yet, he always managed to give me some of his food, the food that he needed just as much as I did.


	2. Different Thoughts

POV: Splinter's

Pairings: none

AN: Sorry if I get Splinter's thoughts wrong. It's the first time I have ever written in Splinter's point of view. It might be the last since I don't think I'm all that good at it.

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Chapter 2: Different Thoughts

I watched as my little mutant turtle sons practice the new kata I had taught them. They were doing fairly well for their age. For humans, kids this young wouldn't even be toddling. My sons, Michelangelo and Raphael, were at that age and they could walk, perform some moves of ninjutsu, and they could talk. Of course, since they were both boys, they didn't get along all that well. Boys never did.

"I'm better than you," Raphael sneered once they were finished and I dismissed them from the dojo, both of them done for the day. Michelangelo pushed Raphael in anger.

"Do not fight, my sons," I called after them. Upon hearing them argue some more, it was obvious that my words did not register in their minds.

I followed after them and found them sitting in the lair, messing around with each other. They were still arguing. Well, this kind of behavior was what I expected from them. They were young and they couldn't help it. Males were always competitive. This was no different in the relationship between the two brothers.

"My sons, you are both equally successful when it comes to your training," I told them, standing in front of them. I had to have a cool demeanor despite how annoying it was that it seemed like I was talking to myself sometimes. They rarely listened to the things I told them, unless it involved training. They would listen to anything that involved their lessons.

"Sensei, how were we created?" Raphael asked softly.

I sat down in front of the two curious turtles. "You were created by a canister of mutagen. It changed you, mutated you, into what you are today," I explained. "We were all mutated by it, our bodies mingling with our DNA and the DNA of a human in your case, and the DNA of a rat in my case. I was human, unlike you two. I had adopted you from the pet store, where you were residing." They nodded, looking like they got it. Good. I didn't like to repeat myself often.

There was only one thing I would never tell them, in fear that they would run away. The thing that would cause them to want to find them. Instead of the two being the only ones adopted, I had adopted four. The two I had with me now would go and try and find their lost brothers. Donatello and Leonardo. They were with me up until our mutation. My heart broke when I tried to think of where they were now. It was possible that they had enough common sense to survive up until now, living on either very little food or none at all, but winter was soon approaching. If they didn't have cover, they would die from getting too cold. Turtles are cold-blooded and that didn't change with the mutation.

That reminded me. I had to go find something to help my two sons that I had now from freezing. If I could help it, I would at least be able to save two of my four sons. I looked at my two sons in front of me and they looked back, their gazes confused at the pain in my eyes. They didn't question it, though. It was a relief. I didn't want to have to lie to them.

I couldn't help but wonder where my two lost sons were residing. Were they in the sewers? Or were they up on the surface somewhere? Had someone captured them and taken them in for research on them? That was a painful thought. Or were they living with some nice people or other mutants? I had a feeling I would probably never find out. I shook my head in sadness. It was no use. I could search forever and I probably would never find them. I felt bad for the two lost sons, and I hoped to every god I knew of that they were okay.


	3. Important Breakthrough

**POV:** _Leo's_

**Pairings:** _none_

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Chapter 3: Important Breakthrough

Two weeks have passed since I first started noticing that Donnie was getting sick. And not like a little cold, either. I swear, even though I have not once been sick and I don't know anyone that has been sick, it was so bad that I really feared for him.

First, it was just a little sneezing. It didn't alarm me that much. Then he started coughing, and it worried me. He gradually started getting paler, thinner, and his temperature went way up. He started sniffling and having a really hard time breathing.

I knew this was probably half from starvation-which made me feel guilty that I hadn't been able to feed him more than was the minimum amount of food we needed to survive, but with risks-and it was probably from the cold weather. It was really cold down in the sewers which made me think that it was a true nightmare topside.

But the thing that alerted me that he was _really _sick was that this morning, he had thrown up anything he had eaten within the last month or two. I wasn't really sure how his stomach wasn't digesting enough, but it was probably because of the lack of food in his system. Donnie wouldn't last this much longer if he couldn't eat anything.

I had no idea what to do about this. Neither of us have ever gotten sick before. I wasn't sure how to treat sicknesses, but I had better get my shell moving and learning or else I'd live with the guilt of losing my baby brother.

The worst thing is that we couldn't go out and look for food 'cause Donnie twisted his ankle yesterday and it hurt him so badly when he walked. I wasn't about to hurt Donnie. But we needed food. Our box of cereal from a while ago was gone. And Donnie was sick and I wasn't about to bring him out into even worse weather than down here.

"What can I do?" I pleaded. I didn't want to lose my baby bro. He was all I had to lose. I didn't care if I didn't eat as long as he was eating. I didn't care if I had to carry him everywhere until his ankle healed itself. I didn't care if I froze as long as he had blankets so he wouldn't freeze himself. I would do anything for Donnie.

"Leo, you have to go find more blankets for both of us. I might be able to get rid of this sickness if I heat myself up some," Donnie told me.

"I'm not leaving you down here alone," I declared. I wasn't about to leave him unprotected down here while he was sick, injured, and completely vulnerable to attacks.

"Then take me with you. We need blankets and food desperately if we ever want to survive," Donnie said. I nodded. But I needed a way to keep him out of the cold as much as possible. I finally came to a reasonable idea. I wrapped him in his tattered purple blanket that he absolutely loved, even if it was a mess.

He says it represents our life down here and if he gets rid of it, something bad will happen to us. I didn't believe that as much as the fact that he told me that he loves the color purple. I found that easier to believe, coming from my baby brother. Also, I knew he did believe in karma and if you do something bad, something bad happens. Either we have bad luck or we must have done something really. Or this was the punishment to someone who used to own us.

We covered him almost completely in the blanket, it being huge. It easily covered his shell and legs. It covered his arm and a majority of the front side of the turtle. I decided I'd take the risk, me being in better in health than Donnie.

I helped him stand up and he slung an arm around my shoulders. For extra support, I wrapped an arm around his shell. He leaned against me, putting most of his weight into my hold.

While we were topside, we found several more blankets. One of them even seemed brand new. It just happened to be purple, which made Donnie smile. He just had to. I liked the color blue, but we had blue pillows and a blue blanket at home.

We actually found more food in the trash can than we had seen in our whole lives. Donnie was even happier at that than when we found the blanket. Donnie cheered quietly in glee at that and I loved seeing Donnie that happy. He had never been so happy in his life. I smiled at him, knowing that we'd be alright in time. Our luck was already changing. We might actually survive the winter.

We went home and I tucked him into our newly made bed. We put all of the old blankets under us so it was somewhat comfortable, even if we were a little squeezed together. We kept the new purple blanket and some other fairly new ones over us. We used the biggest pillow we had that was blue. We ate quite a bit of food, and it was a shock to my system, eating that much. But I wasn't about to complain, in case karma decided to bite us in the shell and then we lose all of the food we had found.

I got a little full after a bit, but I could see Donnie chowing down the rest of his food like he'd die if he didn't eat it all, which may be true. So, in order for him to be put at his peace of mind, I gave him the rest of mine. Even though he looked a little guilty, he ate it gladly.

With all of the food and heat in his system, I could tell that it was helping greatly. While Donnie slept afterwards, tucked in safe and sound, I gradually noticed his color returning. I decided to feel his forehead. It seemed like the normal temperature. Good. I'm sure the only thing that would be wrong with Don when he woke up was his twisted/broken ankle. It's time to think of how I can get that to heal faster…


	4. A Tragic Discovery

**Pairings: none**

**POV: Mikey's**

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Chapter 4: A Tragic Discovery

I was so glad that Splinter was giving us lots of blankets for the winter. Man, it was cold in the sewers this time of year. We were a fortunate family for a family living in the sewers. I had asked one time why we didn't live topside and he had simply told me that humans didn't treat us nicely and it was best for us to live down in the sewers where no one would find us.

Raphie and I were behaving better than we usually did. It was because of Christmas, a holiday where good little kids got presents from Santa. Both of us wanted presents. We were determined to be good, no matter what it took. That meant no arguing, no goofing off during training, and no yelling or fighting. It was tough being good when you couldn't get along. Especially when you're the younger brother of two. Ugh. If I had any more brothers like Raphie, I'd surely lose my mind. Also, if I had other brothers, they had to be younger than me for me to even remotely like them if they were like Raphie boy.

But the one thing that confused me is that Splinter wasn't feeling the Christmas spirit. He was depressed for some unknown reason. I wish I knew what was bugging him so I knew what I could do to help. I had to do something. I wouldn't be a good boy if I didn't try. Also, it bothered me when he was upset. It made me feel useless at times. He seemed to be getting depressed. The one thing was that Splinter wouldn't tell me what was wrong.

Raphie and I decided that we would figure out what was bothering him. It was the one thing we declared that we would do. We would do it even if Splinter punished us for sneaking behind his back to find out. It wasn't like we haven't ever gotten in trouble before, and I mean big trouble.

One night about a week before December 25th, while we were supposed to be asleep, Raphie and I got up and snuck to the little room where Splinter usually meditated at night before going to sleep. We would figure this out. He had his back to the entrance and we knew he was listening, but he couldn't hear us for some reason. We would be toast by now. He was bending over a lit candle, whispering some words in Japanese, the first language he had ever learned. His parents had taught it to him, along with the ways of ninjutsu.

There was one obvious thing he said in English. "My lost sons, I am so sorry," Splinter whispered. What?! There were more of us? There were more of his sons? Did that mean that we had other brothers? Were they older or younger than me? Please let them be younger. But that didn't make me feel any less guilty. He was missing sons.

"Donatello, Leonardo, I hope you are okay, wherever you are. If you are not, may you rest in peace. I hope that one day, I will find you two, my sons," Splinter continued. I felt tears well up in my eyes. Oh, man. Where were they? Splinter didn't know where his other two sons were? That's why he wasn't happy as much as he normally is. This is the time of year where families are supposed to be closer than ever, and then two of us are missing. I looked at Raphie and noticed how sad he seemed, too. He probably felt the guilt I did, even if it wasn't our fault.

We came to a silent agreement. We would find Donatello and Leonardo. No matter what it took, we'd tough through it and keep going. We would find them.

As I slept, my mind wandered. How had those two gone missing? Was it something that happened when we were mutated? Had someone stumbled upon those two and not us and taken them and that was when we got separated? Or had they taken off before the rest of us woke up? It bugged me-almost as much as Raphie when I got him mad-that I didn't have answers. Why couldn't I remember during our mutation? I'm sure that if I could, I would know what happened to those two.

Christmas finally came along, and even though I loved the present I got from Splinter, I didn't want it. I just wanted to find my long lost brothers. Raphie had the same reaction which made Splinter's ears flatten against his head. "Do you not like your presents?" he asked us sadly.

"No, I love my gift and I'm sure Raphie does, too. It's just that…I just want my lost brothers," I whispered. Raphie nodded in agreement. Splinter looked down at his hands, which were folded around a little picture in his lap. I wondered what that picture was.

"I'm aware of that. But there's nothing we can do, I'm afraid. They could be anywhere in the world by now. Tomorrow, it will have been a year. We could look forever and never find them," Splinter said quietly, clearly upset.

"We could at least look down in the sewers today, to see if they're still here," Raphie offered.

"That is a great idea, Raphael," Splinter agreed. I nodded excitedly. We might actually find our brothers today, but Splinter did have a good point. They could be anywhere by now.

We all got dressed in thick coats, since it was cold outside. Splinter even said it might be snowing outside. I wasn't sure what snow was, but I had a feeling it was another way to say it was cold.

As soon as we were all dressed up, all warm, we went looking for our long lost brothers.


	5. Unknown Intruder

_**Pairings: none**_

_**POV: Leo's**_

_**AN: Just another glimpse into the protective side Leo has for Donnie. I love how Leo is always protective over his brothers. I'm writing this chapter on the snowy weather-somewhat-while I'm waiting for the schools to announce if I'm having a snow day tomorrow or not. I sure hope so!**_

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Chapter 5: Unknown Intruder

I suddenly heard loud splashing footsteps in the sewer tunnel outside our little place. My bare instincts took over and I looked out through the barrier of pillows guarding our house. There was no one that I could see, but I knew that they were there. I sensed that they were after us. So I looked at Don. He was curled up under his favorite purple blanket and had his head laying on the pillow we shared, only using half of the rather large pillow. He was asleep with a soft smile on his cute face.

Since today was Christmas-that much we could get from all of the talking that we heard while we were topside-I had gotten Donnie a gift. Well, three gifts. He deserved it for putting up with all of this. I had gotten us three more blankets, the fuzzy kind that Donnie loved dearly, a little electronic that Donnie had spent about an hour trying to figure out before putting it under a pillow he kept next to him. Even though we share a pillow, we both keep a pillow close by in case we roll. Donnie's pillow was purple which wasn't a surprise. Mine was blue. No shocker there, either. I had also gotten an outfit for each of us. Donnie had been insisting on us wearing clothes and I thought it was a good idea because it would help us blend in if we were topside. We wouldn't get looked at twice, unless there was an over-protective adult out there who would question us about where our parents were at. Eh, we didn't know. So, we would avoid those kind of people.

Donnie loved the outfits. They were basically matching except for the colors. Donnie had a purple T-shirt with black jeans and a grey hoody that matched. Mine was the same except for the fact that the purple was blue on me and the hoody was black, since the grey hoody didn't go well with the blue. We would be twins and basically, we were, except for the fact that Donnie was maybe about a few months younger than me. Or who knows? There was a slight chance that Donnie was older than me. But we considered me older, not caring who actually was. He looked up to me and that was exactly why I had to watch over him. I couldn't let anything happen to him.

Donnie had actually gotten me something, too. He had gotten more pillows for us, which were currently using as a wall. He had gotten us some hats, scarfs, and jackets for us.

We had even eaten a semi-big meal, more than we had ever eaten in one meal. Donnie was quite happy with our day, and so was I. Except that now, we might be in great danger.

I knocked down the pillow wall with my foot, not getting up that much. I covered the two of us with the blankets, careful not to wake him or cut off all air to his lungs. It was safer to stay still and I was really glad Donnie was fine. Or else he'd give away our position with a sneeze in his sleep or a hiccup. That was the last thing I needed. It was also pretty lucky that Donnie was breathing evenly. I focused hard to not pant or at least breathe hard. I couldn't be caught taking a really big breath or really shallow breaths because that was the kind of thing that would blow our make-shift cover. Our captors would take us away, maybe separate us if they found us. I just hoped that they didn't decide to go digging through our stuff, looking to loot us of our blankets and pillows.

The people completely passed us until a younger boy-who ironically sounded like Donnie somewhat, really young-said that he had spotted our pillows and blankets.

"I fear that this is someone's home. We should not take anything. I'm sure they are misfortune like us if they live down in the sewers," I heard an older man say. I gulped silently and slowly so they wouldn't notice the little movement.

"Sensei, do you think that it's them living in there? It looks pretty tiny," the young boy said. Wait, did they know us from somewhere? Had they seen us before? Were they following us? Oh, man. I had to be more careful. Now, I was sure that we were both doomed.

"I'm not sure. But it is not safe to make assumptions," the older man told the kid. "It may be a human."

What?! '_Human?' _Did that imply that they _weren't _humans?! It wasn't safe to look out to check, though. I would have to figure it out somehow. I'd go crazy if I never knew.

As soon as I was sure that they were long gone, I woke Donnie up. "Eh, what's up, Leo?" he mumbled, still half asleep-all to my amusement. I shouldn't have woken him up. His red eyes were sleepy.

"We have to move," I told him, my protective side kicking in. I couldn't let those people come back and try and kill us. I couldn't let anything bad happen to Donnie if I could help it.

"Why?" he worried, shooting up from his position on his bed of blankets and pillows.

"Someone found us, but I hid both of us. We can't risk them coming back for us," I explained. He nodded weakly. He actually looked quite sick at the thought. I was feeling the same way.

I pulled out our big duffel bag we kept hidden for emergencies. And this, most certainly, was an emergency. I stuffed our big blue pillow and Donnie's smaller purple pillow in there. Donnie grabbed the smaller bag and packed his little electronic in along with the food. It was the only way he could feel like he was helping. Anyway, we knew that if he tried carrying the big bag, he'd probably end up dropping it from the weight, even if it's only pillows and blankets. We had gone over this for a reason when we knew that we weren't safe. I'd carry the blankets and pillows and he'd carry all the food along with anything else he wanted to take with.

As soon as we were done, I took one of the remaining blankets. After Donnie had his hat and scarf on, I tied the blanket around him before he slipped his jacket on. "It's cold out there. We need to stay protected at all costs, and whatever you do, hide as much skin as possible," I told him, looking at him. I placed a hand on his shoulder and he nodded before slinging the bag of food over his shoulder. I smiled at him before getting my own jacket and scarf on.

"Where will we go, Leo?" he whispered.

"I don't know, Donnie. We just can't stay in this general area of the sewers, in case they come back, looking for us. We can't let the bad people find us," I admitted. He nodded. I shoved my hat over my head and pulled the duffel bag over my shoulder. It didn't actually weigh all that much. I kissed his forehead softly before pulling his hat down further on his head so it hid the top of his head as best as possible. "Let's go, Donnie. We better get going."

He took my free hand and we shared a brotherly glance. "We never look back to this place," I told him and he nodded. And to think, the most unknown visitors could boot you out of the place you had grown up in for all of your life. But, life wasn't fair, and this was the karma laughing at us. We must have done something horrible without knowing it. Even Donnie agreed, and he was the logical one. But if there was one thing that we've learned with living down here, don't take everything you have for granted, because eventually, you will lose it.


	6. Unwrapped Present

**Pairings:**_ none_

**POV:**_ April's_

_**AN: **Sorry if I got their personalities messed up. I'm writing this at midnight. I'm tired but I can't sleep. Writing puts me to sleep. Can't help it. And I didn't really start watching the 2003 series until about two months ago. So, I'm not that far in._

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_**Chapter 6: **Unwrapped Present_

I woke up on New Year's Day, not at all happy with Casey. How could he expect me to want to go to a New Year's Eve party? I'm not good at staying up all night, especially after having a little wine. Why must Casey drag me to the stupid thing every year? Sure, it was the night before the new year, but why did they have to celebrate it like Christmas? I think I was partied out. I couldn't bear to go to another party or look at another present for a while. I had just recently been to my parents' house down in Florida for Christmas, then I went to visit Angel in California for Christmas, her wanting to live on a beach and since she had been born in California. Then I had come back and celebrated Christmas with Casey and his family. I'd also had to be dragged to a Christmas party for the people who moved into the apartment next to mine. Then, last night, I'd been to the god-awful New Year's party. I couldn't stand the holidays anymore. I'd explode if I had to go to another holiday party any time soon.

Casey busted through the door, scaring the life out of me. "What do you want, Casey?" I demanded, already in a bad mood.

"You've got to come see this. I was just going out to go get something, and I saw the weirdest looking little kids walking on the street. They don't seem to be with anyone," Casey panted. I looked at him. "J-just come here."

He took me outside and I saw what he meant. There were two little kids-boys from the looks of it-sitting against a wall to an apartment across the street. They were talking quietly between themselves and it looked like they were arguing about something. Knowing it was early, I kept watching them, trusting the fact that no one's going to see that I'm only in a robe and a pair of pajama shorts. It was cold out here, but who cares?

One of them had a big duffel bag over his shoulder. I strained to hear them. "Donnie, come on. You need a blanket. You're shaking," the one with the duffel bag argued.

"I don't want to get my blanket dirty out here," the other one complained. "I don't care if I freeze. I don't want my blanket to get dirty out here."

"It's not like it didn't get dirty in the sewers. Please, Donnie, I'm not going to let you freeze out here. Please, Donnie, just this once, can you just care a little bit about your health?" the one in blue and black pleaded.

"Leo, I'm fine. Now, I believe we've come to an impasse. I won't use my blanket to help myself warm myself up and you won't eat anything, saying it's all for me. I won't use my blanket until you eat something. You've gone days without food, Leo," the one in black, grey, and purple sighed.

As they argued more, I noticed what Casey had meant by how they looked weird. They weren't wearing any shoes, and from here, it looked like their skin was green. Their hands, which they used to express themselves quite often, appeared green, too.

Finally, the one in black and blue ate, and the other one allowed for his purple blanket to be wrapped around his shoulders. At first I thought that the one in purple was a girl, but he looked like a guy.

"Come on. We've got to keep moving before someone sees us," the one in blue sighed. The other one nodded. They put their stuff away and the one in blue helped his friend or brother up to his feet. That was when Casey just had to be an idiot.

"Hey," Casey called after them. They turned around, the one in blue having a furious look on his face. The face on the other one expressed fear in the purest form. His liquid red eyes burned into my soft blue ones and I felt his fear even though they were across the street.

"Leave my brother alone," the one in blue defended, talking to Casey. His brother kept close to him, hanging onto his arm. But he kept his eyes on me.

"Leo, I don't think they're going to hurt us," the one in purple whispered so softly I almost missed it.

"All humans want to hurt us. I don't care if they come across as friendly. They don't know what we are and I like it that way. Now, let's go before something happens," the one in blue pleaded.

"Leo, please. Can you trust me for once? I trust you every day, without a doubt. Can you please trust me? Just this once?" the younger one from the looks of it asked.

"Donnie, I do trust you. It's them I don't trust. I know you believe that everyone deserves a chance, but the guy freaks me out," the one in blue argued. "The girl's fine."

Donnie let go of his brother's arm and turned to us. He looked over Casey once before nodding to his brother's words. "Drop the bag," Donnie called to Casey. Wait, Casey had his bag of hockey sticks and baseball bats on him?! The idiot! I elbowed him and he dropped it. Donnie glared at him through narrowed eyes and Casey sighed, and kicked it to the side, a few feet from him.

I slowly walked over to them and Leo pulled Donnie against him, shifting him slightly so Leo stood in front. Okay, Donnie had one brave brother. His brother seemed to want to do just about anything to make his brother happy and keep him safe. I wondered if Donnie had ever wanted to do something risky, and Leo had had to make a choice to either please his brother, but put him at risk, or hurt his feelings, but keep him safe. That would give Leo something to worry about.

Donnie stepped around Leo, and met me halfway. Leo didn't push Donnie out of the way, despite I could tell how much he wanted to, just to keep his brother out of harm's way. I wasn't going to hurt anyone, though, except for Casey who I would get later for carrying his bag around the little kids. He held his green hand out and I noticed that he only had three fingers. "Hi, my name's Donnie," he chirped happily.

I shook his hand, smiling. "Nice to meet you, Donnie. I'm April, and that's Casey," I introduced myself. Leo glared at Casey, obviously not liking Casey that much. I didn't blame him. That bag quite honestly scared me, too. I didn't want to know how many gang members had died because of the weapons Casey carried around in his bag.

"Casey scares me," Donnie whispered to me. I nodded.

"I know," I sighed.

Donnie looked back at Leo, still holding my hand, except he held mine in both of his tiny hands. "Leo, introduce yourself," he squeaked. Leo looked at me. I could see in his eyes the secret message, 'You hurt my brother, I'm going to hurt you a lot worse.' I could understand that. He was very protective and I could easily tell that. Donnie pulled my hand forward and Leo extended his hand. He placed my hand in Leo's and I resisted the urge to giggle. It was so funny because it felt like Donnie was my dad and Leo was my soon-to-be husband because he did it in such a fashion, it was like you're supposed to do it at weddings. The dad of the bride is supposed to place the bride's hand in the groom's.

"Leonardo," Leo said stiffly. Okay, so I wasn't going to call him Leo if he didn't want that and I had a feeling I knew why he didn't me to call him Leo. It was obviously a name Donnie had come up with, and I had a feeling he only wanted Donnie to call him that. Okay, Leonardo it is.

"April," I said, trying to be nice and to not scare either of them. Donnie seemed perfectly okay with the situation. Leonardo looked like he was trying to be okay, because Donnie asked him to. Leonardo obviously had to keep his brother safe. I wondered if they had any family, but something happened to them. That might be why Leonardo had to look over Donnie. Was his full name Donatello, like Leonardo? Hmm. I'd have to ask.

"Would you two like to come in?" I offered. Donnie looked at Leonardo. Leonardo met Donnie's gaze and smiled.

"Sure," Leonardo said. Wow. That was a shocker. Either Leonardo was realizing that I was no threat to them or Donnie was really good at giving people a look to get them to give in. Leonardo picked up the fallen duffel bag and Donnie grabbed a smaller bag. Leonardo slung the duffel bag over his shoulder and took Donnie's hand. Donnie held the smaller bag in his hand.

"That looks heavy, Leonardo," I commented. "If you want, I could carry it for you. I honestly don't mind."

Leo nodded and handed me the bag. Wow, what was in here? Pillows and blankets? It was so light! But I'm sure Leonardo has dragged that bag around for a while now and his shoulders had to be aching.

I led the two boys inside and got them into the apartment. Casey decided to stick downstairs in the shop and I knew why. He was probably mad. Who cared?

Leonardo climbed onto the couch and Donnie, wanting to follow his brother around like a shadow, wanted to get up. But he was a little short. I picked him up and helped him onto the couch. Leonardo closed his eyes and relaxed a bit. It looked like the couch was reliving muscle stress. Donnie curled up by his brother, laying on his side. Leonardo gladly kept an arm around his brother.

I had a feeling that this was probably the best present I had gotten throughout the holidays. It just had to be. It would be like I had two sons. All I wanted was a life to settle down with and this was just what I needed for it. Even though Leonardo still seemed a little wary around me, we all got along just great. Donnie absolutely adores me, is still a little spooked by Casey, and Leonardo is just there to feel the same thing that Donnie is, even if he fakes it sometimes when Donnie's excited about being around me. We'd all get along just fine, as soon as Casey apologizes for scaring the two…


	7. New Lessons

**Pairings: none**

**POV: Donnie's**

**AN: This takes place fifteen years after the last chapter.**

* * *

Chapter 7: New Lessons

I was waiting for Leo and Casey to get back from patrol. I couldn't go to the junkyard by myself. Despite what April kept saying, I didn't want her to spend money on the stuff I might not ever have a use for. I got my spare parts for all of my inventions from the junkyard.

Ever since I had turned seven, I had grown to have a fascination for inventing. Even though I knew I could never contribute to science the way I hoped I could, Leo, Casey, and April appreciated my work greatly. I liked the feeling that they used my inventions that worked almost every day. It made me very happy, and that's why I kept going. But sometimes, if I thought I needed something, I would go find it in the junkyard and haul it back, but I would never use it. That's exactly why I didn't want April to buy stuff for me.

Well, I could go to the junkyard by myself, but Leo and Casey couldn't be on patrol. If I wanted to go, they had to be home. But for whatever reason, they wouldn't let me go with them. I wanted to go out and test what I learned from the books I read. Leo and I both learned a cool self-defense but we didn't have a sensei. We were pretty much out own sensei, teaching ourselves and each other what we knew.

Ninjutsu was an ancient Japanese battle art. It was so much fun to learn and to practice. I found that with Leo's help and learning things from books, I was great at it. I almost came up to Leo's level in training, since he was slightly further ahead than I was. Sure, I knew the same amount of stuff as Leo, maybe even a little more, but when it came to the physical part of putting your skills to the test, I was falling a little behind. Leo was okay with that, since he still felt that he had to take care of me. I still looked up to my older brother. We would always be the same way. Leo watches over me and takes care of me, and I look up to my brother.

April came into the room where I was waiting for Leo and Casey to get home. I was tapping my feet on the floor, my bag slung over my shoulder. I sat in the comfortable chair in the living room, my own hockey stick sitting on the arms of the chair.

Leo and I were kind of down when we came to the realization that we didn't have any access to any of the traditional weapons. Casey-upon seeing how down we were because of that-offered to teach us how to use his weapons. It was quite easy to us. Since Leo had wanted to use the katanas, he normally took a baseball bat that could be used in the same way. I wanted to use the Bo-staff and a hockey stick was almost perfect for it. I had gotten quite skilled with my own personal hockey stick that was mine because it was purple. It was quite cool.

"Hey, Don. What are you up to?" she wondered.

"Waiting for Leo and Casey to get home," I sighed.

"Oh. Well, you know, I could always take you if you wanted me to," she offered. I looked up at her. "I quite honestly do not know in the slightest what you usually try to find there. Maybe I could help you."

"You would do that for me?" I asked. She nodded. "Well, I'm ready to go. How about you?"

"I'm good to go," she chuckled. I stood up and found that I was her height now. I had grown taller than Leo, but that didn't mean I was the one Leo looked up to-in the literal sense, yeah, he did have to look up at me.

We headed out and walked to the junkyard while April talked to Casey on the phone, telling him where we were. Even if April was good in ninjutsu and was great with a hockey stick-like me-Casey still worried about April.

April had decided to take lessons from Leo and me a year ago. It worked out quite well. She had raw skills that I found very easy to teach her when it was my turn. Leo and I took turns teaching her. One day, I would teach her a few skills, the next day was Leo's turn, and it went on. Today had been Leo's turn before he headed out with Casey several hours before to patrol with Casey.

Casey and Leo were almost certain that someone was doing their job for them aside from the police. They found almost nothing at night. Today, they had planned that they'd know where the gangs or bad guys would be targeting and meet them there. They were determined to find out who it was. It was bugging them that they couldn't find the people they were looking for. I had kept telling them that I'd be good at this job since I understood how people thought, no matter who they were. I'd think of a fool-proof plan on how to find them.

April and I finally made it to the junkyard. But, unlike most nights, the gates were locked. I sighed. A while back, Casey and Leo had taken away any pocket blades I had acquired. I didn't have any way to pick the lock. So I decided to do the one thing I haven't had to do in a while.

I gripped the iron bars in my hands and began to climb up. April watched me. She had a better plan for how she would get in. She slipped right through the bars, being the skinniest human I knew. She had a very slight form and could do just about anything.

I finally got to the top and looked out over the junkyard. I found a pile of mechanical junk a ways off. Good. I now knew where I was going. April stood a ways back, knowing what I was planning on doing. I stood up on the top of the twenty feet tall iron-gate and balanced, holding my hockey stick out to my sides. It helped me balance. Then I crouched down and dropped down, preparing myself for the rough impact.

When I was a foot from the ground, I got myself into position and did a roll when my shell hit the ground. I got to my feet quickly, not wanting to delay us. April took my hand and we walked through the junkyard, avoiding the really big piles of junk around us.

We were about halfway to the junk pile I had in mind when we heard something clatter behind us. I whipped around, drawing my hockey stick. "I'll protect you, April," I told her.

Then the Purple Dragons stepped out of the shadows. That meant that Leo and Casey would be here soon. The Purple Dragons wielded baseball bats, some knives, and hockey sticks. There were five of them.

I decided to take them out. I'd make it. I stepped forward. "Oh, hey, it's the ugly dude who's always trying to take us out," one of the five laughed. "What? Were you afraid that we'd recognize you?"

What? Was he referring to Leo? But Leo always wore clothes when going out. He always wore clothes in general, same with me. That didn't make any sense.

"Hey, it's the five jerks who are about to get their shell kicked," I laughed to April. She smiled at me. The Purple Dragons frowned at me and charged forward. I gulped. Maybe playing their game wasn't such a good idea.

* * *

**AN: I know, I'm evil. Such a cliffhanger. Ha ha!**


	8. A Different Perspective of Life

_**POV: **__Raph's_

_**Pairings: **__none_

* * *

**Chapter 8: **_A Different Perspective of Life_

I stood off to the side, casually sitting on a pile of junk in the junkyard. Apparently, our competition beat us here. But, it seemed like the dude wielding the hockey stick was a ton smarter than the Purple Morons. Well, everyone was smarter than them. But, this dude had experience. His girlfriend stayed out of the action.

"Should we step in and teach the dude a lesson in fighting?" Mikey offered, probably sensing how badly I wanted to go beat them up-or a different group-for a third time tonight.

"Nah, we should let this dude be. He's got _some_ skills," I answered, holding a hand up. "I just want to sit back and watch the show."

This dude was swinging and spinning with a passion and with years of experience behind it. Now that I thought about it, those moves looked oddly similar to the moves we were taught as we were learning how to deal with all of the weapons so we'd have more experience. He had all of his footing right and was wicked good. He had all five of the Purple Dragons laying on the ground unconscious in under five minutes. He scoffed.

"That was fun," the dude chuckled. In fact, he looked like one of the Purple Dragons himself. He wore a purple shirt under his grey hoody and he had black jeans on. He wore black boots, which had purple stripes on it. He had on black fingerless gloves and had on a purple hat. He slung his hockey stick on his back and turned to his girlfriend of some sort. She was wearing bright colors, a yellow T-shirt with black elbow long sleeved shirt underneath it. She wore purple leggings, and black sneakers with yellow and purple laces. I'm betting her two favorite colors were yellow and purple. Well, the two colors went well together. But I swear, I knew this girl from somewhere. Her fiery red hair stood out. Man, where did I know her from?

"That was awesome, Donnie," the girl laughed. The guy, Donnie, bowed, a smug smile on his face.

"Man, it felt good to finally get to bash some heads," Donnie smiled.

"That was great for your first time. Your lessons are really paying off," she said and kissed his cheek.

Two guys walked in, the shorter guy dressed like Donnie, except his purple was blue and he wore a black leather jacket. The taller one was in a red elbow long sleeved shirt and black jeans with white and red tennis shoes. He had a black hair and I swear, I knew him from somewhere, as well. He had a bag of baseball bats and hockey sticks over his shoulder and his white hockey mask had his hair pushed back.

That was when I knew it. I knew where I remembered all four of them. The girl and Donnie had been in an alley and were cornered by the Purple Dragons. The guy and the other one had come along and saved them both. Mikey hadn't been with me that night so I hadn't wanted Mikey to miss a fight with the Purple Dragons.

"Aw, they beat us to it!" the guy in red cried. "God, when were they were?"

"Who are you talking about?" Donnie wondered.

"Our competition!" the guy in blue said. "They always beat us to a fight!"

So it was those two who have been trying to take our fights. Apparently, they were mad at us, even though we hadn't done anything. It had all been Donnie's doing.

"Oh, that wasn't them. It was all Donnie," the girl chuckled. Donnie beamed proudly.

"Donnie!" the guy in red whined.

"Casey!" Donnie imitated. "They were going to attack us. What? Do you think I was going to back down from my first fight?"

"He's got a good point," the guy in blue said. "We share the same genes. We don't back down from a fight."

Huh, that was fairly similar to how Mikey and I rolled. Maybe we should go introduce ourselves. We didn't know we had such a competition with a guy who has never been in a fight and that our competition didn't back down.

"Let's go tell these guys what they're up against," I chuckled softly to Mikey. He nodded and stood up. I joined him on my feet.

"Hey, fighters!" Mikey called from our perch. The four looked up at us. God, there was something about the eyes of the two guys, not the one in red. Their eyes looked so similar.

"It's you!" Casey whined, the guy in red.

I was grateful that they couldn't see us. We had taken up to wearing capes that cloaked our bodies. It had all been Mikey's idea. He could be such a little kid sometimes. But, in times of need, they proved to be pretty awesome. It felt so cool to have my cape whip behind me as I ran the rooftops. It was like my mask. My cape was black, but my mask was blood red. Mikey's cape was white, but then again, his mask was orange. White and orange looked good together, just like black and red.

"Yep, we're your competition. But we thought it was nothing. Turns out you guys are better than we think," I chuckled, gesturing to us.

"This guy here," I continued, pointing at Donnie, "has some wicked skills when it comes to roughing up bad guys."

"Thanks, but I'm not a part of this. I never go out with them," Donnie told me.

"Aw, it's a shame. We've seen the work you can do and we've seen the aftermath of the job the other two do, and you'd actually provide some competition to us if you three worked together. Maybe the girl, too," I sighed.

"We'd make a great team or perfect enemies," Mikey told them. "You and you, you guys have some wicked ninja skills. We should know, since we're ninjas ourselves."

"Yeah, but one rule of being a ninja is that you stick to the shadows. Your bright colors put you in danger of not being able to blend in," Donnie said, looking at Mikey.

"Hey, you sound like our dad. I'm Mikey," Mikey chuckled and got down off of our pile. He shook hands with each of them. But he froze a bit before getting to the last two, Donnie and the guy in blue. There was obviously something up with Mikey.

"I'm April, and this is Casey," the girl said. I nodded as I came down.

"I'm Leonardo, but I go by Leo if you choose to talk to me directly. This is my baby bro, Donatello, but he goes by Donnie," the guy in blue said. Was it irony that their names were the same as the brothers we lost or was it meant to be?

I shook hands with April and Casey. I looked Donnie in the face. His liquid red eyes reminded me of Mikey when we were little. His eyes burned with childish innocence. Man, he looked like he had a tough life, same with Leo. I shook Donnie's hand and I knew that it was meant to be. He only had three fingers. I shook Leo's hand and I could see in his eyes that he was like me. He would do anything for his younger brother. I felt the same way about Mikey. Mikey looked up to me and I had to keep him safe. Obviously, it was the same way with Leo and Donnie.

"Raph, they're the same," Mikey whispered. "It's them. I know it."

"I know, Mikey. I know it's them, too," I breathed, looking at Donatello and Leonardo. They were our long lost brothers.

"What are you two talking about?" Donnie asked.

"You're our brothers. We know it's you. Our dad told us that we were always missing two brothers. You've been missing ever since we were all mutated. We've all mourned over you two. He told us that our brothers' names were Donatello and Leonardo, and that you were the same as us," I explained. "We never even got to meet you two before you disappeared."

Donnie and Leo gripped each other's hands. I took off my cape to show myself. "I've grown used to shaking Mikey's hand and your hands feel the same way. Green, rough, and only three fingers. You're our brothers," I continued.

I could remember back to every Christmas. After our first Christmas, it had become tradition that we look for them every Christmas morning before we opened presents. We had started to get presents for Donnie and Leo when we were five in case we found them. There was a huge box in Splinter's room filled with the presents we got for them.

"Splinter will be so happy that we found them," I told Mikey.

"You have to come with us," Mikey said to them. "Our dad has to know that you're alive. Every Christmas ever since our first Christmas, we've looked for you all morning before going home and opening presents. We had started that tradition when we figured out that you two were missing. We hoped each year that you were okay and that we'd find you, but each year, we found no trace of you ever being alive. He has to know. He's been in a lot worse mood than us each day because he feels he's been a terrible father because of you two being missing."

Donnie looked at Leo. Leo looked down, clenching his eyes shut. "I really hope you haven't looked down in the sewers each year. We were down there for a whole year before people discovered our little home and we fled to the surface. April and Casey took us in because we were on the streets, close to freezing to death and close to starving to death," Leo whispered, gripping Donnie's hand tighter. "We haven't been down there in years."

"Wait, was your home a bunch of pillows and blankets?" I asked. Donnie nodded. That caused Mikey to cry out in pain and fall to his knees.

"We were so close to them and we didn't even know it!" Mikey sobbed. "If we had taken the chance to look through there, we would've found them a long time!"

"Mikey, stop causing a scene," I sighed. "I know that we came close to finding him that one year. I felt it but I wasn't about to disobey Splinter."

Mikey hugged Donnie and Leo tightly. He was still crying, but I think it was mostly happiness now. I eventually couldn't take it and hugged them, too. I finally got a chance to meet my lost brothers. Oh, man. I missed them so much. I'm sure I missed a lot of their life and lots of things that helped them grow up into who they were now.

They agreed to come home with us, and April and Casey came with. They obviously understood Donnie and Leo, so I'm sure they'd be okay with meeting a mutant rat. Or, maybe not. I wasn't sure how they'd react. I'm sure knowing that there were at least four mutant turtles was bad enough. I just hoped they all took the meeting well.


	9. Finally Home

**POV: **_Donnie's_

**Pairings: **_none_

* * *

**Chapter 9: **_Finally Home_

We followed Mikey and Raph, our supposed brothers that we've never met. I wasn't exactly sure if that was true, but I wasn't about to take up the chance to get to know any other mutants. Sure, I loved Leo, April, and Casey, but I had been longing to meet other mutants like Leo and me.

Raph and Mikey led us to a manhole, and I whimpered, hugging Leo's arm. "Don't make me go back down there," I cried. They looked back at me.

"What's wrong, Donnie?" Leo asked me.

"I don't want to go back down there," I whispered. "It scares me."

"Oh, April and Casey, you'll get used to the smell, but it really reeks," Mikey commented. I flinched, remembering every detail of living down in the sewers, especially the first few weeks when we didn't know we could go up to a whole new world to find food for us.

I could remember my stomach twisting in pain and hunger and Leo's tears-my fearless brother crying scared me, meaning we were all doomed-when I told him that I was starving. It had pained me to see Leo cry, and starve with me. The smell was making me sick, making me want to throw up. Tears stung my eyes every minute. I could remember very clearly when I had thrown up clear and liquid stomach acids coming up and burning my throat. Leo had run from the place in fear, holding his mouth and closing his eyes. I had been too weak to get up and follow him, so I had watched him from my hands and knees.

I bit my lip and closed my eyes, gripping Leo tighter. "Don't make me go back down there," I breathed, burying my face into Leo's shoulder. He looked at Raph and Mikey.

"Is there another way to get to your house?" Leo wondered.

"Nope. The only way to get to a house in the sewers is through the sewers. We've tried digging through the concrete, but we realized that our lair is right below a human's house," Raph told him.

"Donnie, do you want to go with them, even if it means going back down into the sewers?" Leo asked me, stroking my head, being the big and brave older brother he was.

"Only if I don't have to look or smell," I said.

Leo took his mask off and wrapped it around my head, making sure that I couldn't see out. "Just cover your mouth and nose," Mikey offered.

"Turtles don't have noses," I muttered. "Or ears."

"Then how can we hear?" Raph demanded.

"It'll take too long to explain it," I argued, just wanting to get this over with.

I heard the manhole cover scrape over the cold cement. I heard a little splash down below. I liked how when I was blindfolded, I could hear a ton better. My other instincts aside from sight always heightened when I wore a blindfold. Leo and I had practiced with that, trying to see if we could get better from not being able to see. I'm sure people in the world who were actually blind could hear, feel, and taste a ton better than most people.

"Send him down," Leo called from the sewers. I felt two three-fingered hands grip my wrists as they led me to the open manhole.

"Ya ready, Don?" Raph asked. I nodded. They slowly lifted me up by the wrists and lowered me down into the sewers. Soon, I felt Leo's all too-familiar grip on my shell as he lowered me the rest of the way. I shuddered when I felt the sickening dirty water that always ran through the sewers down this way.

"Hey, I recognize this place, Don. This was our manhole," Leo chuckled.

"Yeah, I knew that as soon as I walked into the alley," I sighed. "I don't want to remember this place. I know it too well."

I soon heard two rather soft splashes in the water and two more silent ones. I felt one of the other turtles take a hold of one of my hands. Leo walked somewhere else. I was almost certain that the other turtle with me was Raph.

I used my other hand to cover my mouth and the bottom half of my face so I wouldn't be able to smell a thing except for my hands, which smelled good. I liked the smell. That reminded me of the fact that my hands smelled _too _clean.

"Leo?" I asked.

"Yeah?" he wondered, his voice coming from behind me.

"I never got the stuff I was looking for at the junkyard," I pointed out. He chuckled.

"I guess we got distracted, now didn't we?" Leo sighed. I nodded.

"So, that's what you were doing in the junkyard?" Raph asked me, right next to me. Yeah, he was the one who was leading me through the winding sewer tunnels.

"Yeah. I'm sort of an inventor. I just make stuff for Leo, Casey, and April. I know that I would never be able to sell my stuff for money and to provide a solution to the problems of the world, which I'm almost positive that I have something to solve at least half of them," I chuckled. "I get my parts from the junkyard and polish them up when I get home. I use them to make things from scratch, no blueprints or anything. I have never used brand new parts."

"Man, that's impressive. We're too impatient and clumsy to do something like that," Mikey commented, ahead of me.

"Who you calling clumsy?" Raph demanded.

"Hey, your big hands can't work with tiny objects like tools and screws," Mikey defended.

"Hey, speaking of big hands, who's hand can cover your whole face, you tiny jerk?" Raph imitated.

That made Mikey give up the argument. For now. I had a feeling that argument could go on for hours. Leo and I rarely argue anymore. I guess having a home calmed us down and solved our differences. There's no need to give up food or blankets, because April and Casey provided us with lots of food and warmth. We no longer have to freeze or starve constantly.

"You know, you probably wouldn't argue as much if you were closer," I commented.

"We're the closest we can stand. It's not working. Our dad told us the same thing," Raph chuckled.

"Well, Leo and I get along just fine," I pointed out.

"Then you must have a close bond," Mikey muttered.

"We kind of had to stick together. It's lasting on," Leo spoke up. "It was necessary for survival."

"By the way, when did April and Casey take you under their wing?" Mikey wondered.

"On New Year's Day," April told them.

"We were maybe one," I added.

"How long were you living down in the sewers?" Raph asked.

"From the time we mutated to Christmas Day when we fled the sewers," Leo answered calmly. He was clearly remembering just as well as I was.

"How did you survive with no one looking out for you?" Casey was the one to ask.

"We starved for maybe two to three weeks, I'm not sure anymore. We were forced to drink the sewer water at first to keep us hydrated. I remember Donnie getting really sick from that. I don't blame his body for wanting to dispel the disgusting liquid. It was awful. The first time Donnie threw up anything in his system, meaning the water and stomach acids, I ran off for an hour or so. I discovered the manhole that you brought us down and went up. I found blankets and pillows in the dumpster up there, along with a little box of crackers. I brought them all home and I ate half of the box right away, and Donnie took his time, not wanting to rush his weak system. We bundled up in the blankets and used the pillows as either a bed or a mattress since the cement tunnels can cause permanent scratches on your shell and plastron. We survived off the minimum of things we needed, and we lived off that, nothing more. There were very few times when we got a treat, like something special to eat, or brand new pillows or blankets, and we treated those little gifts like we would die if they disappeared. It was…in one word, horrifying. It sickens me to think back on it, knowing how much pain both of us have gone through to survive. We'll always have a knack that others probably won't ever have if they have parents. Pure survival, living off of the bare essentials of life. Food, water, shelter," Leo explained.

"People who have parents have it so easy. Well, humans, since we've lived in the sewers, take things they have for granted. There's just no pleasing them. Like, I over-heard a conversation, although I can't remember it all that well. It went something like, "Hey, honey. I just got a brand new car. And a new raise. Let's take that new money and buy ourselves a big home and have a family." That was when we were on the streets the week before April found us. It sickened me that they didn't care all that much about what they had. Taking their things for granted. You don't know what you have until you lose it. And you learn to live with the things you have and be happy that you're still living," I muttered.

We all remained quiet for the remainder of the walk, me not wanting to make it sound any darker. Our conversation had taken a turn for the worse, but that was the way it was. We absolutely had a dark year in the sewers. It was all tragedy. I couldn't stand to talk about it. It was one part of my past I'd prefer not to re-live.

When my feet met rough concrete, I figured we made it there. Good. I took off Leo's mask, and he took it back. We looked around, and saw that they were living more comfortably than we had in the sewers, but it still wasn't much. It looks like a lot of the stuff had been recovered from the dumpster and junkyard. We wouldn't judge, though. We understood what it was like.

There was a couch and a chair, creating a little area where there was a bunch of ruined comics and other things that they were looking at or messing around with before they left. There was a little walkway, leading to some place unknown to me. There was a little cooler, which I'm sure was filled with food they could find. It was actually warm down here. Well, it was the middle of June. Yeah, it would be hot this late at night. I hadn't really recognized the warmth at first.

"Nice place," I commented.

"Sorry that it's kind of a mess. We…we don't get visitors, like, at all," Raph said, embarrassed.

"Don't worry. When we lived in the sewers, our place was so much smaller and we didn't have some of the things you have," Leo chuckled.

"Yeah. What I would've given to have slept on a couch while we were down here. It would've been so much better than sleeping on a mattress of pillows, but I do know that sleeping on the couch can cause back and neck pain later. Still…" I trailed off.

"Hey, Sensei, we met some people I have a feeling you're going to want to meet," Mikey called. Their sensei came out of the little hallway, and it wasn't a shock that he was a giant mutant rat, but it was a serious surprise. This was our father that we haven't met? And we were seventeen!

His eyes widened as he saw us. He could clearly see our green skin and lack of two fingers and two toes on each hand and foot. "It's you," he whispered. I looked at him questioningly. Was it a bad thing that we were here? Were we supposed to leave now?

He ran forward and I flinched only slightly, but relaxed into his gentle hug for both Leo and me. His furry arms and soft robe felt nice against my face. Leo and I looked at each other secretly and we smiled. We hugged him back, knowing that he was glad that we had finally made it here. After seventeen years of searching, we were finally home.


End file.
